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Have you’ve been searching for The Best Cowboy Cookies Recipe? THIS IS IT! Featuring coconut, pecans, cinnamon, chocolate, and oats – these cookies are thick, chewy, and so flavorful!
Cowboy Cookie Recipe
If there’s one thing I hope you know about me, it’s this: I AM OBSESSED WITH COOKIES!
So when a friend introduced me to Cowboy Cookies a few weeks ago, I was instantly intrigued. And a little embarrassed. Because, like… how have I never heard of these incredible cookies before? HOW?
They’ve been around for AGES! But they really rose in popularity during the 2000 Bush-Gore presidential campaign. Do you remember this? Apparently Family Circle Mag featured recipes from each of the candidates wives, and then had their readers vote. And Laura Bush’s Cowboy Cookies beat all of the other submissions black and blue! Although I must confess, Tipper Gore’s Ginger Snaps look pretty darn good, too.
But I digress! After my brief history lesson, I basically ran to my kitchen and got to work creating my own version of these famous cowboy cookies! I used my chewy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies as the base. But I added coconut, cinnamon, pecans, and chocolate chips. These are signature ingredients to cowboy cookies, so that’s nothing new. Since we added more dry ingredients to this recipe, I decreased the amount of flour and added an egg yolk, which helps keep the cookie dough moist.
Cowboy Cookie Ingredients
- butter: we’ll use brown butter because it has SO much flavor!
- light brown sugar: But dark brown could be used in a pinch! This ingredient adds sweetness and moisture. Be sure to really pack your brown sugar into the measuring cup before adding it to the recipe.
- granulated sugar: Because we don’t want too much moisture, we use a little granulated sugar, too.
- eggs: Make sure your eggs are at room temperature! And that they’re large eggs – not medium or extra large. When it comes to eggs, size does matter. So using a smaller or larger variety can totally throw off a recipe.
- vanilla extract: A generous dash enhances all of the complex flavors in this recipe.
- flour: Our beloved binder that holds everything together. Use all-purpose flour, for best results. And be sure you’re not packing your flour into the measuring cup. For the most accurate measuring, use a kitchen scale. Or, gently spoon your flour into the measuring cup, then level it off with the flat edge of a knife.
- baking soda: Our leavening agent, which help the cookies rise.
- cinnamon: Adds a delightful cinnamon flavor signature to cowboy cookies.
- salt: Balances out the flavors and ensures the cookies won’t be overly sweet. Skipping salt in baking recipes is a big mistake! The key is to use just a pinch! Trust me!
- old-fashioned oats: AKA rolled oats! But not to be confused with steel-cut oats or instant oats.
- shredded coconut: Use sweetened or unsweetened – up to you!
- pecans: But walnuts can be used, if you prefer!
- chocolate chips: or chocolate chunks! Up to you!
How to make Cowboy Cookies
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F). Combine butter with both sugars until light and fluffy.
- Then add eggs and vanilla. In a large bowl combine cinnamon, flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually beat the flour mixture into the butter mixture, beating until just incorporated.
- Finally, stir the oats, chocolate chips, coconut, and pecans.
- Scoop 3-inch balls of cookie dough onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 1 and 1/2 inches between so they have room to spread. Note: this makes BIG cookies. Because you’re using almost 1/4 cup of cookie dough for each. For smaller cookies, decrease the size and bake time!
- Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, or until cookies are golden and set at the edges and still slightly soft in the center. They’ll firm up as they cool! So don’t overbake! Cool cookies on baking sheet for 15 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Pin it for Later
MORE COOKIE RECIPES:
- Chewy Ginger Chocolate Chunk Cookies
- Brown Butter Bourbon Pecan Chocolate Chunk Cookies
- Coffee Cardamom Chocolate Chunk Cookies
- Gooey Brown Butter Walnut Chocolate Chunk Cookies with Sea Salt
- Brown Butter Coconut Chocolate Chunk Cookies
AND IF YOU TRY THIS COWBOY COOKIE RECIPE, LET ME KNOW! LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW AND DON’T FORGET TO SNAP A PIC AND TAG IT #BAKERBYNATURE ON INSTAGRAM! SEEING YOUR KITCHEN CREATIONS MAKES OUR DAY.
The Best Cowboy Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup (227 grams) unsalted butter melted until browned.
- 1 and 1/2 cups (319 grams) light brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup (99 grams) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 and 1/3 cups (270 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups (178 grams) old-fashioned oats
- 3/4 cup (60 grams) sweetened flaked coconut
- 1/2 cup (64 grams) pecans, roughly chopped plus more for decorating
- 12 ounces (340 grams) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 (F). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside.
- In a large bowl using a whisk, beat together the browned butter and both sugars until well combined, about 2 minutes. Don't worry if they look a little separated here.
- Whisk in the eggs and yolk, beating until well combined. About 45 seconds. Whisk in the vanilla.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, oats, coconut, pecans, and chocolate chips.
- Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, mixing just until combined.
- Scoop 2-inch balls of cookie dough onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving 2-inches between each ball so they have room to spread.
- Bake, one sheet at a time, in preheated oven for 12 minutes, or until cookies are golden and set at the edges and still slightly soft in the center.
- Press extra chocolate chips and pecans on top of cookies when they come out of the oven (optional). Sprinkle with sea salt, if desired.
- Cool cookies on baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
SO AMAZING!!!! Thank you!!
I have several recipes which are almost identical to this one…Calypso, Ranger and Kitchen Sink, this is the only one that says melt butter till it turns brown. I used Crisco that comes in sticks and I don’t think it ever gets brown! The butter was so hot, it carmelized the batter as soon as I added it, definitely nothing I have ever seen in any other recipes. It also made 4 dozen fairly good-sized cookies but not as flavorful as the others I have tried.
Hi Richard. They would definitely be more flavorful if you used the brown butter, as per the recipe. Crisco has no flavor, so using it as a replacement dramatically alters the intended flavor for this recipe in particular.
Made these wonderful cookies this evening. They are delicious. Cookies I would definitely make again. A co-worker is in the hospital and I am excited to take these to her to aid in her recovery…. Thanks for this awesome recipe…
There seems to be two sets of instructions. One combines all the dry ingredients, and the other has the nuts, coconut and chocolate chip and oats folded in after the wet ingredients are added to the dry. Does it matter? Also the first variation says three inch balls while the one after the ingredient list says 2 inch. Help!
I’m not a fan of coconut. Anything I can substitute it with? I’d like to make these
Hello,
thank you so much for sharing this recipe. a couple of questions:
Does the browned butter need to be cooled before using it?
Does the dough need to be refrigerated before baking? How would that change the recipe?
My cookies didn’t expand? They are small and fluffy. What am I doing wrong?
I want to rate these 5 stars but there is something I’m missing in process that leaves these cookies round and pale. They are not spreading out and browning as they should. I’m following the recipe exactly, or at least I think I am, I’ve done it twice and the same thing happened both times. They are good but ugh! what am I doing wrong?